Sunday Snippets: Merry Christmas!!

Matthew 1:21-23 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

Here I am again, apologizing for a late post. ;) This time I had a really good excuse though...I spent Christmas Eve in the hospital. :/ Not so fun. Don't worry, it's nothing too serious, and I am on the upward road, but let's just say yesterday was a bit of a long day. :) Praise The Lord I was able to make it to church this morning, which was such a blessing and an answer to prayer!!

I just want to take this Sunday Snippet to think about the incredible truth of what happened as God became man. Over 2000 years ago, The God of the universe became a man, and came to this planet that He created. Just think about that for a minute. 

Wow.

It never ceases to blow me away how God chooses to work out His plans. If you had asked any good Jew around the time of Christ what they thought the Messiah would be, I'm sure they would have answered something along these lines: "Oh, the Messiah will be a great King! He will come with ceremony, majesty, and power. He will sweep down on our enemies, and quickly destroy them off the face of the earth. Immediately after that He will set up His kingdom and reign over us!" 

Well...was that how it happened? Not exactly. While Messiah was a great and powerful King, He didn't appear from the clouds and rush down on the earth with the sound of a trumpet. That's going to be how His second coming is! No, God chose a humble young woman, most likely younger than I am now, who was submitted to His will. Mary was not sinless, and neither was Joseph. They were both simply seeking to serve God with their lives. When Jesus was born in the Bethlehem stable, there was no pomp and circumstance. 

And whom did God choose to alert first to the coming of His Son? Some of the poorest class of society. A group of shepherds. Farm hands. Don't you think that when the Shepherds left the stable from worshipping at Christ's feet, and went to blaze abroad their story, that they probably raised some eyebrows?? I should certainly think so! My mom put it like this: These people had a choice to make. Many of them probably turned up their noses at the message that the Shepherds brought, saying, "IF the Messiah actually did come, you would most definitely not be the first to know!" It must have been difficult for those men, trying to spread the wonderful, amazing news that they had heard and seen, and having people ignore or disbelieve them! (Hmm, sounds familiar.)

Lastly, I love the way God's Word tells us so many different prophecies that were fulfilled through this one night in history. The Messiah will be born in the city of David. Check. He will be conceived in a virgin's womb. Check. He will save His people from their sins! Praise God, that one was fulfilled too!! 

This evening, as we close out the beautiful and holy day of celebration, let's not let our hearts let go of the beauty of what Christ did for us. We should celebrate the love God showed us that night, all year round!! 

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas filled with memories, fun, and most of all, praise to God. I am so thankful for each of you! Merry Christmas,
Mykaela